Sodexo Names 2008 Law Firm Diversity Leaders

January 16, 2009

Four prominent law firms have been designated as "Diversity Leaders" for 2008 by the Law Department of Sodexo Inc., a leading foodservice and facilities management company, itself globally recognized for benchmark status in diversity and inclusion.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., January 16, 2009 – Four prominent law firms have been designated as “Diversity Leaders” for 2008 by the Law Department of Sodexo Inc., a leading foodservice and facilities management company, itself globally recognized for benchmark status in diversity and inclusion.

Arnold & Porter; Ford & Harrison; Hunton & Williams and Paul Hastings were selected from among 25 law firms with which Sodexo partners for its business in the U.S. to receive this first annual recognition. The firms provided details regarding their diversity commitment, programs and results of those programs. A committee of Sodexo Legal Department team members evaluated the responses and awarded these top firms based on their diversity policies, including any policies regarding alternative work schedules or work hours flexibility, their significant recruitment and retention efforts, and their employment of a diverse professional legal staff.

“Diversity and inclusion at Sodexo are critical components of our business strategy,” said Sodexo General Counsel Robert Stern. “We’ve structured our unique Outside Counsel Diversity Initiative to focus on growing our business with those law firms that best reflect Sodexo’s values, including with respect to these core areas.”

Sodexo’s Law Department Outside Counsel Diversity Initiative exemplifies the Sodexo legal team’s commitment to advocate strongly for the increased usage of minority and women-owned firms and the expanded hiring, retention and promotion of diverse counsel within all other law firms that serve Sodexo.

Sodexo, Inc.
Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com) is a leading integrated facilities management services company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with $7.7 billion (USD) in annual revenue and 120,000 employees. Sodexo serves more than ten million customers daily in corporations, health care, long term care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government, and remote sites. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., is a member of Sodexo Group, and funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.sodexofoundation.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $11 million in grants to fight hunger in America.